I drove 1,100 miles,
To find a photograph I lost;
It’s just a polaroid I used to keep,
Of a girl that I once loved.
And sleeping leads to nightmares,
’Cause I never can forget.
So now I’m dreaming of Los Angeles,
As the winter closes in.
I said, I’m dreaming of Los Angeles,
As the winter closes in.

And we met seven English girls,
Who asked if we’d like to see God.
I’m not one for missed adventures,
So I answered with a smile.
We spent the night on razor’s edge,
All innocence and sin.
Now I’m strung out on the Bowery,
As the winter closes in.
I said, I’m strung out on the Bowery,
As the winter closes in.

I won’t cry if you can’t love me like the way it used to feel,
We had our summer on Long Island, now there’s wounds that never heal.
I won’t cry if you can’t love me like the way it used to feel,
We had our summer on Long Island, now there’s wounds that never heal.

I’d paint a picture of my mother,
But I can’t recall her face.
She’s even far away at midnight,
And her laughter haunts my dreams.
I ain’t never been this broken;
I’ve got nothing left to give.
Now I’m searching for salvation,
As the winter closes in.
I said, I’m searching for salvation,
As the winter closes in.
Man, I’m searching for salvation,
As the winter closes in.

I won’t cry if you can’t love me like the way it used to feel,
We had our summer on Long Island, now there’s wounds that never heal.
I won’t cry if you can’t love me like the way it used to feel,
We had our summer on Long Island, now there’s wounds that never heal.

8 Comments

General CommentI can't believe I'm the first to comment on this song!!
It's one of the best songs off the "Daylight" album in my opinion.

As for the meaning; I'm not really sure on my idea but here it is anyway.
I think its a song about pain and maybe that he's done so much and so many things have happened that even when a loved one doesn't feel for him anymore it doesn't affect him.
Like he's become immune to pain kinda. Thats my idea anyway.

General Commenti never thought about it that way. i agree it's an amazing song though. my opinion. i feel like he's thinking back on everthing he's been through. and all his regrets are just falling back down on him.
maybe he cheated.. maybe that's why he says ..
"So I answered with a smile.
We spent the night on razor's edge,
All innocence and sin.
Now I'm strung out on the Bowery,
As the winter closes in."
and it's something he regrets more then anything and gives him nightmares. he once loved her so much, but he made one mistake and it was all lost. and he's telling her that if she can't love him anymore that he understands.. that they had an amazing relationship that he will never let go of. but the mistake he made causes wounds for him that hurts him more than anything.

and he can't turn to his mother or family for comfort because she's gone? i dont know. but he's so lost now that he's trying to find himself. maybe within himself.. or within faith

General CommentThis is a beautiful song!! I personally think the song is almost about a summer love. But for him he doesn't stop loving her when the summer was over. and now she is gone and he is empty and feels nothing. "as the winter closes in" showing all the time that has past since their "summer on long island" but he understands that their love was going to end, which is why he says "I won’t cry if you can’t love me like the way it used to feel,We had our summer on Long Island, now there’s wounds that never heal. "

My InterpretationThe 5th verse is probably the hardest to figure out. I think how he uses "seven English girls" as a symbol for temptation or sin he uses "mother" as a symbol of a haven, warmth, a house, or someone caring. He can't bring forth the memory, recall, of having someone care for him after the mistake he made. He feels as that comfort is far gone.

When he sayings "and her laughter haunts my dreams" he is trying to say that he threw away something so perfect and good, like the relationship he was in, for a stupid mistake. The mother, the care and comfort, is laughing at him because he threw away something incredible. He is calling himself stupid. It ends with him searching for protection since everything he had is gone.

General CommentJust pointing out, when he says "I'd paint a picture of my mother, but I can't recall her face. She's even far away at midnight, and her laughter haunts my dreams.
I ain't never been this broken, I've got nothing left to give so now I'm searching for salvation as the winter closes in."

I think that he's specifically just talking about how he's so lost in his pain and regret, that feels as if even his mother is lost to him. Which I think highlights the underlying meaning of the song- the pin and regrets he's felt and gone through.